Saturday, May 19, 2007

...I understand why my mother drank. It's hard letting go of your kids and getting older. As I am in South Bend, I am so proud of my son for his accomplishments, but then again I am sad for the fact that while I was stumbling through life, the torch has been passed to the next generation. While I wasn't looking, the boy has become a man. Sitting through the public commission ceremony today, it became clear to me why my mom lost her will to live. What is left after the kids leave? What role do we take and how long do we have left? It is truly amazing that parents have dealt with this since the beginning of time. Mixed emotions, I have a ton. So proud, so happy, so sad. My mother drank herself to death. I know I won't go that way but it makes you wonder what purpose does my life have now? I hope to find it.

Friday, May 18, 2007

noun 1. a commissioned military officer 2. an officer in a police force 3. an assistant with power to act when his superior is absent [syn: deputy] 4. an officer holding a commissioned rank in the United States Navy or the United States Coast Guard; below lieutenant commander and above lieutenant junior grade

How wonderful to be in South Bend for the commissioning of my boy to the rank of Second Lieutenant in the Air Force. It was only yesterday that he was hiding under the couch from me and asking if I wanted to play with his "twains." The weather was beautiful and the ceremony was touching as we all cried. He is graduating tomorrow with a degree in Aerospace engineering. He heads to LA in June and it will be very rare that we will see him again. This is what happens as life continues and time marches on. I couldn't be more proud of him and his accomplishments. He is sad about leaving the golden dome and also excited to start his life post college. This is the first of two to leave this summer. This one was comparatively easy to deal with. The next one....

He was there when I saw the Beatles for the first time. My brothers best friend and a guy I can't get out of my head. One of the greatest I have ever known. There are lots of laughs in the afterworld, that's for sure and you are finally at rest.Miss you bud. Say hi to Mom and Dad, Butch, your Dad and Mom, Rhonda and Terry, too.

Jerry Falwell died yesterday.Let's get a review of what the minister had to say...

“AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals”"It appears that America's anti-Biblical feminist movement is at last dying, thank God, and is possibly being replaced by a Christ-centered men's movement which may become the foundation for a desperately needed national spiritual awakening.""If you're not a born-again Christian, you're a failure as a human being."After the September 11 attacks Falwell said, “I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People For the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say 'you helped this happen."“Christians, like slaves and soldiers, ask no questions”“[Homosexuals are] brute beasts...part of a vile and satanic system [that] will be utterly annihilated, and there will be a celebration in heaven...

I don't know...my Jesus is a tolerant, loving God who has room for all in his kingdom. Jesus hung around with the lepers and threw the money changers out of the temple. I wish no ill will on any man or his family. I will say this for Mr. Falwell. He is a man who stuck by his principles and never wavered in what he believed. I admire him for that. As a Christian man, my views are different than his. I pray for his family for the swift passage of time.

Wally Schirra passed last week at the age of 84. He, John Glenn, Gordon Cooper, Gus Grissom and the rest of the astronauts were heroes in my book. I know that when the Gemini or Apollo flights would blast off and there would be news coverage about a spacewalk or some other important dramatic devolpment, I'd skip school claiming illness. My mom knew. He was, to me, a true man, daring and brave. Where are those guys anymore? Will they manifest themselves in guys like my son who is got a degree in Astronomical Engineering? Will we ever go back to the moon? Will any of those people who posses bravery and guts EVER run for President? We could sure use them. Mr. Schirra and his co horts gave me many memories and thrills. When I head to the other side, I want to know what's out there. Maybe Mr. Schirra knows already. Godspeed Mr. Schirra.

Sunday, May 13, 2007

Here is the video of a guy who has an incredible job. This incredible video clip -- I don't know where it's from, or when? -- documents the everyday work of a man whose job is to maintain and repair high-voltage overhead power lines.He is transported to those lines by flying on top of a helicopter, and he crawls around on the lines with some special gear. Without that gear, he'd fry.He wears a fire-retardant "hot suit" made in part from metal threads, so the garment functions as a Faraday Cage."A half a million volts pass around my body but I can work without interference from electricity," he says in the video. "There's such a hunger for electricity these days, nobody wants to take lines out of service to maintain them."